[ad_1]
Dementia diseases such as Alzheimer's disease are among the most serious diseases of the elderly and affect millions of people around the world. In Germany alone, about 1.7 million patients currently live with dementia, conditions for which there are hardly any effective treatment methods, let alone treatments.
A message from Susanne Röhr from the University of Leipzig and her colleagues is even more encouraging. Scientists evaluated data on dementia rates in industrialized countries and found a slight downward trend.
Slight drop
For their meta-badysis, the researchers evaluated the results of seven studies involving a total of 42,485 subjects who studied the incidence of Alzheimer's disease and other dementias in comparable samples with a time interval of at least ten years. The studies were conducted in the United States, France, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Japan.
The badysis showed that in most of the countries studied, the rates of new cases seem minimal in France, Great Britain, the Netherlands and the United States. This means that 85-year-olds are less likely to suffer from dementia than those who reached their 85th birthday a generation earlier.
Exception Japan
In contrast, however, the development in Japan, as reported by Röhr and his team. Thus, there has even been an increase in the number of new cases of dementia. According to the scientists, we must therefore badume that the rates of new dementia of dementia do not develop uniformly in the industrialized countries. A transfer of results in Germany does not seem to be possible without further delay.
"Even in industrialized countries, living conditions can vary considerably, influencing dementia development trends differently, despite the generally very favorable living conditions that typically characterize high-income countries," says Röhr.
Better prevention?
Overall, it is too early to draw any conclusive conclusions from these observations, as so far there is little data for many other regions, the researchers point out. However, one thing is already clear to her: the risk of developing dementia can actually be influenced.
For example, Röhr and his colleagues attribute these positive developments to factors such as improving education: "More education and more demanding work activities increase brain resistance to dementia" says co-author Steffi Riedel-Heller. In addition, more is being done today to treat and prevent other risk factors such as obesity, diabetes, and hypertension.
The absolute number continues to increase
"A healthy lifestyle, characterized by many physical and mental activities, a non-smoking diet and a balanced diet, not only helps prevent cardiovascular disease, but also prevents dementia," said Riedel-Heller. Until now, little research has been done on cultural and ethnic factors, but also on environmental conditions, trends in the development of dementia.
However, as Röhr points out, this is an area in which more and more research is in progress and is also needed. Because: The absolute number of people with dementia continues to increase, mainly because of a longer life expectancy. "Seeing that everyone and the community can do something is a glimmer of hope, so it's time to talk more about preventing dementia," concludes Riedel-Heller. (Clinical Epidemiology, 2018, doi: 10.2147 / CLEP.S163649)
This article was written by DAL
In the video: Bring the brain to the maximum of your performance: you only need 10 minutes a day
Source link
